Initial NVR Meeting

Mortgage Meeting

Well we had our first meeting with our NVR Mortgage rep, Steve.  NVR is Ryan's sister company for all things mortgage-related.

Not really too much to say about it.  We did our initial paperwork for our full mortgage application, which everyone knows is A LOT of paperwork, followed by a ton of back-and-forth e-mails/phone calls on things/additional paperwork to get all of the little pieces in place.  Since there's about a million different pieces, it's understandably a long and somewhat invasive process.  I say this because they are looking at information that is very private - bank statements, credit reports, employment information, etc.  So we're at a point now where we've got everything in (I think), and we are just waiting on underwriting/final approval.

Couple things to note...

First, our NVR rep, Steve, was fantastic to deal with.  This is my first mortgage so I had a lot of questions.  He was very patient with me and we actually met face-to-face twice and exchanged countless e-mails.  He has spent several hours with me to answer my questions and to explain the loan application process, and also presented us with several initial mortgage options that we could look at.  He has been very understanding of our budget, wants, and needs.

Now, I will tell you that when you build a home with Ryan Homes, you have only 45 days to secure a mortgage commitment (whether it be from NVR, or a mortgage company of your choosing).  If you don't have a committed lender in 45 days, you default on the deal and forfeit your deposit money with Ryan.  If you elect to apply with NVR, you don't have to worry about that.  And if for some reason NVR denies you, then you have the option to cancel the deal with Ryan AND get your deposit money back.  You do not HAVE to apply with NVR, but you should because it won't hurt anything and it doesn't automatically commit you to anything with them.  You can still apply with other banks and if you're ultimately approved by more than one lender, then you've got your pick!  The one thing I can say for NVR, and I'm not taking sides here, but they are directly affiliated with Ryan Homes.  Your home build is accessible to them at all times.  All change orders to your build are made available automatically to them.  This cuts back on paperwork if you go with a third-party bank and, more importantly, saves time.  The other nice thing is that you DO NOT have to wait for a final appraisal to have full loan commitment with them.  You will with other banks, which means you'll get a loan commitment contingent on the house's appraisal value that the bank will come out and do after the house is built.  Well, if there is any issues with delayed appraisals, or your appraised value comes back significantly less than what your purchase price was, you could be looking at trouble, more paperwork, and basically a significantly delayed closing process (which means delayed move-in).  NVR, because they work directly with Ryan, doesn't need to do this post-build appraisal and therefore can give you a full loan commitment upfront - one less thing to worry about so you can focus on your house's construction!

I will point out that, while Steve has done a very good job, he's also basically a sales rep for NVR.  They want your loan.  They want your money.  Clearly.  Even though they will most likely sell it to Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae almost immediately.  In fact, if you go with their mortgage, they give you a nice incentive of about $3000 to $5000 (depending on where you live) to apply to your closing costs for the home loan.  This is ON TOP of whatever other builder incentives you are getting from Ryan Homes.  They're rates are slightly higher than my credit union's, but still competitive with the overall market.

So far, I haven't seen anything that might make us NOT want to use NVR.  I've read some bad things about them on the Internet, but, then again, I've read bad things about EVERY mortgage company I've researched.  So, you take the good with the bad and do what's most important to you.  As for me, the more cash incentives at closing the better!

For now, we're considering some backup options, but we're proceeding with the NVR application full-steam and will update you all as it progresses!